Outrage Over Sick Teachers Paying for Their Own Substitutes Sparks Calls for Reform
Heather Burns at Martin Elementary School in South San Francisco, where she now teaches third grade. Burns was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2016, and said she had to return to her previous school in San Francisco as soon as she completed her radiation treatment because she couldn't afford to keep paying for a substitute teacher while on extended leave. (Stephanie Lister/KQED)
A 40-year-old law requiring public school teachers on extended sick leave to pay for their substitutes is under scrutiny by some state lawmakers after KQED reported on the practice.'It’s absolutely outrageous and leaves you in a state of desperation, when your cancer diagnosis already has taken your hope away.'Heather Burns, San Francisco teacher
KQED found that a San Francisco Unified elementary school teacher had to pay the cost of her own substitute — amounting to nearly half of her paycheck — while she underwent extended cancer treatment. Since the story published, more public school teachers have reached out to describe similar hardships.
Obscure Law, Major Impact
Unlike many other employees, public school teachers in California don't pay into the state disability insurance program (SDI) and can't draw benefits from it.
Under the California Education Code, teachers get 10 sick days a year, after which they receive 100 days of extended sick leave. It's during this latter period that the cost of a substitute teacher is deducted from their salary.
Eric Heins, president of the California Teachers Association, said fixing the problem could be as simple as eliminating that part of the education code.
"Some of our advocates in Sacramento are talking with both the governor's office and with [state Sen.] Connie Leyva and others who have expressed interest as this continues to go viral," Heins said. "There's a lot of discussion about it and outrage and, you know, you can say rightfully so."
But Heins added that scrapping the 1976 law would strain already cash-strapped districts, and noted that extra state funding would first be necessary.
Leyva, D-Chino, who chairs the Senate Education Committee, offered an apology to teachers who have had to pay for their substitutes while facing catastrophic illness.
"I'm sorry we don't have a better system in place," she said in a recent interview with KQED. "We couldn't help you, but we're going to try and fix it for future teachers."
But Leyva said that fix will likely have to wait until the next CONTINUE READING: Outrage Over Sick Teachers Paying for Their Own Substitutes Sparks Calls for Reform | The California Report | KQED News